Fri, 23 Nov 2018 11:48:03 -0800WeeblySun, 24 Jul 2016 04:00:00 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/a-primer-on-gardening-care-and-feedingIf you’ve been following our guide so far, you should now have a garden planted in good soil with your vegetables spaced to allow plenty of room once they’ve grown in. That was a fair bit of work, but you’re not done yet, at least not if you want to get anything when it’s time to start harvesting.

Now that your plants are in the ground, you’re going to have to take care of them. As always, there are a few different things you’re going to want to keep in mind.

WateringThis is the obvious one, isn’t it? When you get down to it, your plants need three things to grow: good soil, sunlight, and water. We’ve already covered the soil, and mother nature will provide the sunlight, but watering will be up to you.

The best time to water your garden is in the morning when it’s still nice and cool outside, which allows more of the water to get to your plants without evaporating. That said, for many of us watering in the morning can be tough to do, so you can also water in the afternoon. You’ll want to wait until after the hottest part of the day has passed, but before dark. This will reduce the water loss to evaporation, but ensure that your plants dry before nightfall (wet leaves can introduce harmful fungi).WeedingThe next thing you’ll want to focus on is weeding. Even though we took care to remove existing weeds and discourage their growth earlier, new weeds will no doubt show up. Weeding can be a constant job, but it’s an important one. Those unwanted plants are stealing space and nutrients from the vegetables you’re trying to grow, so get rid of them as quickly as possible. Some people like to weed the garden weekly, others try to pull up a few every time they water. Find a rhythm that works for you, and stick with it.VarmintsFinally, you’re going to want to be on the lookout for animals eating or otherwise destroying your plants. Rabbits and deer can make short work of a garden, wasting all your efforts. There are a lot of different strategies out there to deter critters, and you’ll likely use more than one. Here’s a short sampling:

Use raised beds, which deters smaller animals, like rabbits, from entering the garden

Cover plants with netting

Plant things like garlic and lavender, which repel grazing animals

Building fencing around your garden, and ensure the fencing continues into the ground to discourage burrowing animals

Use animal deterrent sprays on your plants

Follow these steps to keep your garden safe and growing, and you should ensure a nice harvest later in the season.

-Dave

]]>Sat, 16 Jul 2016 01:36:18 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/-a-primer-on-gardening-selecting-plantsIf you’ve been following along on our series about starting your first garden, you have have already done quite a bit of the heavy lifting necessary for a successful garden. Unless, of course, you’re just reading the series to pass the time, maybe on your lunch break at work. Don’t worry, we won’t judge.

With our gardens ready to plant, it’s time for one of the more enjoyable parts of gardening: figuring out what you’re going to grow. Of course, just like anything else, you don’t want to just grab a bunch of random seeds and starters and cram them into the ground. Unless you want a big mess, of course.What To Consider When Selecting PlantsThere are a couple of major factors to keep in mind when you’re figuring out what kind of vegetables you want to plant:

how much space the mature plant will need, whether the plant needs to climb or requires support, and how much sunlight it requires.

These seems like fairly common sense ideas, and they are, but they’re also very easy to overlook when you’re buying a bunch of seeds or tiny starters. First time gardeners often buy way more than they need and their garden can support.

The interesting thing about plants is that they grow. Shocking, I know, but stick with me here. Some plants stay relatively small, while others balloon out, taking up a ton of garden real estate. Zucchini, for instance, will take up a substantial amount of space once it matures, and can easily choke out other plants. Plan according.

In addition to spreading out and taking up more space on the ground, many plants will grow vertically, or climb. This has both benefits and drawbacks. The big plus is that vertical plants take up quite a bit less ground space, but the trade-off is that they can actually shade other plants in your garden, robbing them of the sunlight they need to thrive. If you have plants that need less sun, or those that thrive with partial shade, put them close to your vertical plants.

Many vertical plants also need some sort of support, which you’re going to want to have ready since they can be hard to find further into the season.Make a PlanNow it’s time to make like an amateur bank robber, break out the graphing paper and pencils, and make a foolproof plan (please don’t rob any actual banks).

Draw out your garden on the graph paper, making it as close to scale as possible. Now start filling in plants as they will be once they’ve grown in. You will want to do a bit of Googling to find out approximately how big everything gets when it fully matures. Don’t be surprised when you end up with a lot fewer plants than you imagined in your head. You’ll also want to align your vertical plants to minimize the shade they produce.

Finally, identify any climbing plants, and make notes in the margins of any support you will need to purchase or build.

Now it’s time to get dirty. Don’t get too excited, I’m talking literally dirty, in the dirt. This isn’t that kind of blog.

-Dave

]]>Sun, 19 Jun 2016 12:56:14 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/proper-wateringProper watering of your yard seems simple enough. Just water it? Right? Well, yes and a very big no. Watering your lawn with the proper technique is an important part of maintaining a healthy lawn. If you water it too little, then you could get the same results. If you are over-watering it then you can get a weak or shallow rooted lawn that is susceptible to drought and drying up. Lawns need about an inch of water a week to maintain the right amount of growth and strength which usually requires 2 to 3 watering sessions per week. So we’ll start by heading to the hardware store...

I love the hardware store. There is always so much cool stuff to look at, but stay focused! You are here for a reason. The lawn and garden section can be a vortex if you don’t know what you need. There are sprinklers that spin, shoot, rotate, move on their own (seriously), and a slew of other types. This is when you have to think about the size and scope of your lawn. You want to select a sprinkler that gives good coverage that is easy to use.

Rotating sprinklers are great for medium to large yards because you can typically set the length and rotation.

Smaller yards can use fixed sprinklers that do not spin or rotate but you may have to move the fixed sprinkler often.

If you have very little grass then you may consider purchasing a decent spray nozzle with different settings and hand water it.

Be sure to buy a non-kink hose that is long enough to reach all the areas of your yard.

In order to ensure you have the right coverage after purchasing your sprinkler set up a bucket in the watering path and if you are collecting about half an inch in 20 to 30 minutes you are getting the proper amount.

If you have any doubts don’t be afraid to consult professionals like MJR Landscape!

Written by Tim Alexander

]]>Wed, 15 Jun 2016 23:09:01 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/special-guest-sam-choan-discusses-fertilizerFor many homeowners who are new to lawn care, one important component that they tend to overlook is the nutritional balance of the ground soil. Like any other plant, grass requires the right balance of nutrients in the soil in order to thrive. The next time you pick up lawn fertilizer, you should notice three important percentages on the product labeling. Combined, these three figures represent the N-P-K ratio. Each symbol represents a specific nutrient and the ratio is there to help gardeners recognize the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in the fertilizer product. These numbers may seem somewhat intimidating at first. When do you know what ratio to use? Well, the following infographic by Organic Lesson should help you understand the basics of the N-P-K ratio. In the infographic, you can learn some basic rules on what ratio to use for specific stages of the lawn.

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and, potassium aren't the only nutrients that are important for lawn grass but they all play an important role. Nitrogen's primary role is to help produce lush, green leaves. Phosphorus is focused more on the downward growth and plays a part in helping the roots develop. Last but not least, potassium has an emphasis on the overall plant and is there to help the plants build resistance against diseases. These definitions should give you an idea of what ratio is better for what.

For example, if you are growing a new lawn from scratch then you want to put a greater emphasis on root development. The development of strong roots would then allow the lawn to thrive and stay healthy for the rest of the season. As we mentioned before, phosphorus is in charge of helping plants develop their roots so a fertilizer that contains a higher percentage of phosphorus should be what you are looking for.

On the other hand, if you have an established lawn that's starting to become stressed or is picking up signs of diseases like dollar spots then the emphasis should be on potassium instead. Keep in mind that these rules should be absorbed in a very general sense and each lawn has to be considered from a case by case basis. If the appearance of your lawn is important to you then we always recommend you consult with a lawn care professional. Before you go ahead and spray any lawn fertilizer, be sure to conduct a soil test to determine what already exists within the soil.

]]>Mon, 13 Jun 2016 01:50:49 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/a-primer-on-gardening-soil-preparationBy now, you’re likely good and ready to break out the seeds or starter plants, and start putting things in the ground. I get it; it’s exciting. The prospect of growing your own green beans and tomatoes is thrilling. But don’t let the excitement overwhelm your good sense. Before you even thinking about planting anything, you need to get your garden soil ready to go.

Why Prepare Your Garden Soil Before Planting?If you want to ensure the maximum yield from your garden, starting with healthy, nutrient rich soil is the first logical step. You’ll want to verify your soil retains moisture well, isn’t compacted, and maintains the proper pH and minerals necessary for plant growth. Failure to do so means and underperforming garden, or even a failing one.

WeedBefore you do anything else, you want to make sure to get rid of any weeds that might be growing in your future garden bed. Those weeds are potential competitors for your garden’s limited resources, so eliminate them with extreme prejudice.

If this is a new garden odds are you’ll be working with a lot of weeds or possibly even grass. The easiest way to eliminate that is it turn the soil over with a shovel, with the weeds on the bottom. Do this early enough and those weeds will die and help add nutrients to the soil.

Test and Treat the SoilIn order to prepare your soil, you’re going to need to understand what it needs. To do that, you’ll need to do a little testing. You have a couple of options when it comes to soil testing. First, the US Department of Agriculture offers soil testing through its Extension program. Second, you can purchase a soil testing kit from your local hardware store. Both options will provide levels of pH, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.

Regardless of which option you choose, follow the instructions provided in the test results to modify your soil. For instance, if the testing reveals that you have a nitrogen deficiency, you can correct this by adding a chemical fertilizer that is rich in the chemical, or by adding composted manure to the soil.

Drainage and water retention is another factor to consider when testing and amending your soil. Ideally, you want a good mix of sand, loam, and clay. Too much of any one of these will negatively impact how your garden retains water. For example, too much sand will make the water drain too quickly, while too much clay will not allow for enough drainage.Turn and Mix the SoilOnce your garden is complete free of weeds, it’s time to start turning the soil. If you’re luck enough to have a rototiller, this will be fairly easy, but hand turning a small garden isn’t too much work. Essentially, you’ll want to chop up the dirt and thoroughly mix it. This will help loosen the soil and mix in whatever nutrients you added in in the previous step.

Once the soil has been well mixed, rake it level, and call it a day. We’re ready to plant now!

A Cautionary TaleHe was filled with pride when he started up his new lawnmower for the first time. It had a wide deck, a self-propelled motor, and - best of all - claimed to be able to mulch up yard waste into a fine green mist, eliminating the need for raking or bagging. Since he was no fan or raking or bagging yard waste, he considered the new lawnmower to be a keen purchase indeed.

But when he finished mowing, his enthusiasm was somewhat diminished...

Looking back on the lawn, he couldn’t help but notice how un-mulched all the grass clippings looked. Indeed, they looked like he had cut it with a regular old, non-mulching lawnmower. To be completely honest, his yard was a bit of a mess.

Nevertheless, he sucked it up, and mowed the lawn with that same lawnmower (mostly) every weekend for over a decade. While he wouldn’t admit it, his anger and resentment were slowly building up.

He would, of course, make minor changes in a vain attempt to address the problem. He’d set the deck higher or lower. Sharpen the blade. He would mow the lawn lengthwise one week, widthwise the other. But no matter what he did, the results were the same: a yard full of ugly, un-mulched clippings to seemed to openly mock him.

His disappointment was made all the worse at seeing the lawns of his neighbors, all of which were finely cut with nary a clipping to be found upon them.

Eventually, he resigned himself to his lot in life. His yard simply wouldn’t look as nice as his neighbors’, at least not until he bought a new lawnmower.

And then his wife started asking questions.

She too had noted the striking difference between her lawn and her neighbors’. But instead of resigning herself to the situation, she began watching, and taking note. She noticed, for instance, that when the neighbors mowed, they did so without the side discharge open.

Finding this observation interesting, she did a little more research, and stumbled upon the terrible truth: her husband had been mowing the lawn wrong for well over a decade. The fancy mulching lawnmower, it seemed, couldn’t mulch up anything if it was spitting everything out immediately after they’d been cut.

Armed with this knowledge, she informed her husband and suggested (demanded) they he try it her way. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that it worked, and worked well.

So what’s the point of this tale? That the husband is an idiot, and should have just talked things through with his wife? Well, I suppose that’s part of it, yes. But it goes a little further than that.

You should understand how the equipment you’re using is supposed to work, and make sure you’re using it correctly. In this case, the mistake only led to an ugly lawn, but in different circumstances someone could have gotten hurt.

-Dave

]]>Sun, 08 May 2016 21:32:57 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/-a-primer-on-gardening-raised-bedsRecently, we discussed the importance of planning out your garden. If you missed that, go back and check it out now . Today, I want discuss an additional consideration before you actually start you garden: building raised garden beds.

What Are Raised Beds?Raised garden beds...

...lift your garden off the ground. How high the bed is depends on how you build them. Most often, they stand about eleven inches tall, which is the height of two 2x6 boards (2x6 boards are actually 5.5 inches wide) on end.

The beds themselves are rectangular, and sit upon the ground. They are then filled with soil, often with higher quality gardening soil, rather than regular topsoil.

Why Should You Consider Raised Beds?Raised gardening beds offer a number of advantages over traditional gardening, including:

Ease of Access: One of the biggest benefits to using raised beds is that getting to your plants is significantly easier; not only are they higher off the ground, but the defined space allows access to everything with ease

Increase Growing Time: If you live in a part of the country with a cold winter, you have a relatively short period of time to garden; raised beds increase this because the soil inside warms up much fast the the soil in the ground

Easily Irrigated: Since you’re starting with new soil, adding irrigation to your raised beds is relatively simple (at least if you do so before you add the dirt)

Improved Weed Control: Because you’ll be adding new soil on top of your existing topsoil, it’s very simply and effective to add weed barriers

Better Soil Health: Raised beds promote better soil by both reducing the amount of compaction and allowing for much better drainage

Protects Your Plants: Raised beds are much easier to build fencing around to keep away hungry animals; you can even lay down chicken wire before you fill it with soil to keep burrowing animals at bay

Additional Considerations for Raised Bed Gardening:While the benefits of raised beds are considerable, there are a few things to consider before you commit:

It’s An Investment: To get started with raised beds, you will need to buy the beds (or the materials to build them) as well as the soil to fill it with; traditional gardening is easier in that respect; the beds will also wear out over time and need to be repaired and replaced

You Must be Space Conscious: Because the raised bed is a limited space, extra planning is required to ensure that certain plants, like squash, don’t monopolize the space

Expansion: Adding to a traditional garden means tilling more soil, but with raised bed gardening, you’ll need to buy or build additional boxes

Despite these relatively minor consideration, raised bed gardening offers a number of key benefits over traditional planting. If you’re new to gardening and don’t mind a small initial investment in time and materials, you should be considering raised beds.

-Dave

]]>Thu, 28 Apr 2016 00:42:38 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/a-primer-on-gardening-planningSomewhere, in your most personal and private of thoughts, you know you’re paying too much for cucumbers and green peppers. It’s a gnawing feeling you have deep inside, but, try as you might, you simply can’t get it out of your head. This is only the beginning. Soon, you’ll be looking at other produce in the grocery store and wondering whether you couldn’t grow your own. Perhaps you might even become judgemental, secure in the knowledge that you could grow vegetables far superior to those available for purchase.

Congratulations. You have just taken your first steps into a much larger world. The world of gardening.

Before You Start Your First Garden

At this point, you’re probably ready to run outside and start planting stuff. I mean, that’s how you get started, right? Well cool your jets, hot shot. Before you grab your shovel and floral print work gloves, you’re going to want to do a little planning.

“But planning sounds boring,” you’re probably saying. “Convince me that it’s an important part of the process,” you implore.

Fair enough; here are just a few of the reasons why planning is so important:

Having a plan will allow you to maximize your efforts, increasing the number of tomatoes yielded per hour of effort

Carefully studying the space available to you will allow you to select the most appropriate plants to grow and the most efficient way to plant them

Planning in advance will allow you to identify and resolve any issues, such as lack of soil nutrients, before you plant your first vegetable

What to Keep in Mind When Planning Your GardenTo get the most out of your time and money, you need to bear a few things in mind when planning out your garden.

First, don’t get too carried away. If your garden is on the small side, it will be much more manageable for a first time gardener. Gardens can be a lot of work, so make sure you’re able to handle what you plant.

Second, make sure your plants have enough room, and make sure you’re able to comfortably get to everything. This might seem to run counter to the first suggestion, but hear me out. Plants need enough space between them to ensure they get the right amount of light and nutrients. Furthermore, taller plants might shade shorter plants, robbing them of the light they need. Make sure you’ve spaced things out enough for each plant to thrive and accounted for the size of your plants once they’re fully grown.

Third, choose your location carefully. Not only should your garden have enough space and be easy to access, you’ll also want to ensure that it gets as much direct sunlight as possible.

Check back soon for more articles on gardening, including entries on preparing soil, selecting the right plants, and keeping your vegetables health to ensure a good yield.

Like the rest of you, as I was getting about that age, my parents sat me down to have the “talk”. You know the one I’m talking about: the talk about mulch.

What’s that you say? Your parents never talked to you about mulch? Well that just won’t do! Buckle up, kiddos, it’s time to go to school. Mulch school.

What is Mulch, Anyway?Why might as well start with the fundamentals here. What is mulch? At its most basic, mulch is simply a material used to cover the soil. And why would you want to cover the soil? Well, there are a few different reasons for that.

First, it helps to prevent weeds from growing, which in turn has two benefits. Not only will you see fewer unsightly weeds, there will also be less competition for nutrients for the plants you actually want growing there. Laying down a nice bed of mulch will save you the labor of pulling out weeds all summer long.

Mulch also acts as a form of insulation that helps to regulate the temperature of the ground. This is particularly important during the transitional seasons of spring and fall, where the air temperature can vary wildly from day to day and hour to hour. It’s also helpful in the summer and winter to guard against more extreme temperatures.

Do you like spending time and money watering your plants? I don’t either, and that’s yet another reason I mulch. Mulch helps the soil retain moisture for longer, which means less watering and less worry about the drier seasons.

If you’re using organic or hardwood mulch, and you should, it will also contribute to the health of your garden by breaking down and adding its nutrients to the soil. Naturally this means that you will need to add more mulch from time to time, but that’s a small price to pay.

Getting the Most Our of Your MulchNow that we’re all on the same page about the benefits of mulch, let’s talk about the best way to use it.

To start, you need to select which type of mulch you want to use. Your options here are much richer than you’re likely imagining. Mulch can be anything from nicely ground cedar chips to grass clippings or even old newspaper. Mulch can be either organic or inorganic. Inorganic mulch has the benefit of staying put and not breaking down as fast, but it doesn’t add nutrients to the soil like organic mulch can.

Once you’ve selected the mulch that will work and look the best for you, it’s time to apply it. Before you start dumping mulch down, however, I suggest taking an additional step and adding a pre-emergent weed prevention treatment. Once the soil is covered with mulch, it makes it more difficult for weeds to take hold.

Once you’ve got the initial treatment taken care of, it’s time to add the mulch. Spread your mulch out to a depth of three to four inches. If you’re using wood chips, you may want to add another half-inch to that to account for settling over time. This depth is ideal for inhibiting weed growth.

And, that’s it. You’ve successfully mulched. No doubt your friends and loved ones will want to hear all about your accomplishments. I suggest that you brag about it on the social network of your choice with all due haste.

-Dave

]]>Wed, 23 Mar 2016 15:48:15 GMThttp://www.mjrlandscape.com/blog/spring-is-the-time-to-fill-in-bare-spots-in-your-lawnAt long last, the snow seems to have stopped falling and we’ve enjoyed more than a few warm days. Spring is upon us, at last. Unless, of course, it isn’t. The weather can be tricky like that.

Regardless, odds are that the snow has, or is soon to be melted away, revealing your lawn underneath. If you are like a lot of people, you’re probably not completely happy about what you’re seeing. Perhaps your lawn looks mostly okay, but there are some bare spots here and there, or areas where the turf is thin thanks to heavy foot traffic.

Don’t worry, you can fix these minor problems and have a healthy lawn before summer. In fact, spring is the perfect time for doing patch work to ensure the new grass is able to grow in completely. Of course, if you don’t, you’re only inviting weeds to take up residence where your grass is thin. It’s always better to prevent the problem than try to fix it after the fact.

In order to maximize your efforts and ensure the best results, follow the below steps to fix bare of thin spots:

Determine the cause of the problem. If you know why you have bare or thin spots in your yard, you can take steps to prevent it from happening in the future, whether than be laying down pesticide or adding paving stones to reduce foot traffic over your grass.

If the bare spot was caused by a spill, such as gasoline, remove several inches of soil from the area and replace with new topsoil.

Apply seed to the area, taking care to plant the same type of grass as the rest of the yard.

Fertilize the area.

Cover the new seed with straw. This will help hold in moisture, as well as prevent birds from eating the seeds before they can germinate.

Water well.

If you’re looking for a slightly easier solution, there are several available. Many companies make products specifically to fill in bare patches. These include patch kits with blended seed, mulch, and fertilizer; and germination blankets that can be cut to shape.